Come As You Are: Art of the 1990s

Telfair Museums turns back the clock for Come As You Are: Art of the 1990s, an exhibition that celebrates and explores the alternative culture of the millennium’s final decade. Titled after the 1992 song by quintessential 90s grunge band Nirvana, this dynamic exhibition explores the history of the 90s through the perspectives of 45 different artists born or working in the United States between the years of 1989 and 2001, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to 9/11. While humorous, quirky, and sure to evoke 90s nostalgia, the works also capture the tensions and alternative culture of this pivotal decade. Covering a range of social issues and geopolitical milestones, the show centers around three principal themes: multiculturalism and the “identity politics” debates, the digital revolution, and globalization. Artists include Doug Aitken, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Glenn Ligon, Julie Mehretu, Prema Murthy, Shirin Neshat, Catherine Opie, Gabriel Orozco, Diana Thater, Rirkrit Tiravanija, and Kara Walker, presenting 65 installations, paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, photographs, videos, and digital art.

Come As You Are is organized by the Montclair Art Museum’s Alexandra Schwartz, Curator of Contemporary Art, with Kimberly Siino, Curatorial Assistant.

Get yourself in a 90s kind of mood with Telfair Museums’ Come As You Are playlist on Spotify. Updated weekly! Have a suggestion for a song you think we should add? Tell us on Facebook or Twitter!

RELATED PROGRAMS

Director’s Circle Preview Dinner

Opening Lecture and Reception

Thursday, June 11 | 6pm
Jepson Center
Free and open to the public

Flashback to the 90s with Telfair Museums and Alexandra Schwartz, the Montclair Art Museum’s first curator of contemporary art and formerly a curator at MoMA in New York. Enjoy a night of classic 90s music, complimentary hors d’oeuvres with a cash bar, slap bracelets, and a lively look back at the alternative art culture of the 1990s.

Lights, Camera, Art! Party with Savannah Magazine and screening of Reality Bites

Guests are invited to join Telfair Museums and Savannah Magazine for a party, plus a screening of the popular 90s film Reality Bites! The Come As You Are gallery will be open for viewing, and one of Savannah’s top DJs will spin 90s-style hits. To top it off, guests will have the opportunity to get a first look at Savannah Magazine’s 25th-anniversary cover contest. Cash bar for beer and wine available.

Members-Only Tour

Sunday, July 26 | 1pm
Jepson Center
Free to Telfair Museums members

Members are invited to a curator-led tour of Come As You Are.

I Love the 90s! Free Family Day

Saturday, August 8 | 1–4pm
Jepson Center
Free and open to the public

“Come as you are” to the museum for an all-ages 90s party! Catch a special concert, make your own tattoos, and take our photo challenge. Funding is provided by the City of Savannah’sDepartment of Cultural Affairs and Georgia Power Foundation, Inc.

Come As You Are is organized by the Montclair Art Museum’s Alexandra Schwartz, Curator of Contemporary Art, with Kimberly Siino, Curatorial Assistant. This exhibition is made possible with generous support from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.